The Troubled Times: Epilogue
by Justsomeone1
Summary: As Nosedive recovers, he reflects on his relationship with Wildwing and his troubled past.


(EDITOR: It's advisable to read "The Troubled Times" trilogy so you have the background information on the domestic situation of the team prior to this story. The original trilogy will now be updated for typos and errors, so make sure to go back and check them out if you haven't already!)  
  
The Troubled Times: Epilogue  
  
It was a peaceful night in Anaheim, the first one in many weeks. The heroes of the city, the Mighty Ducks, were caught in between an afterglow at their recent victory and the sadness that hung over them, knowing that one of their teammates, their true savoir, had been severely injured. However, at this moment, everyone was fast asleep, except one, who was just waking. Nosedive woke up in the middle of the night, overlooking the dark shapes of machinery around him. Normally, this would be a sign that something was seriously wrong, but as soon as the soothing hums of the machines reached his ears, he realized that he was in the infirmary of the Anaheim Pond. The thoughts and memories of reality had soon reached his mind, and a flashback ensued. He remember Draguanus' master plan, a recycled version of the air fortress that he had originally invented when the ducks had ran into the BRAWN robot. They were quickly able to take it out, well, at least to Wildwing who told him the tale: Nosedive, Grin, and Duke were all laid up in the infirmary on minor injuries during that battle. Dragunaus was not one to usually return to old plans and recycle him, but something about this idea awoke the saurian master, enabling him to see greater horizons than ever before. Nosedive had to give him credit, Draguanus spent months on this new plan, even pulling one of Duke's skilled rivals from the Brotherhood to help defeat the ducks.  
  
At first, everything was going according to plan. The saurians pulled off a long string of heists, some of them stopped by the ducks, but many of them were carried out, as expected. Draguanus had pulled another brilliant move in his scheme, establishing more missions than necessary, meaning that while the ducks could stop some, they were unable to prevent them all. Gladfully, it would prove beneficial in the long run that the ducks prevented an extremely tough security system, comparable to the Drake One, from being stolen. However, the dragon had still exceeded far beyond the credit the ducks originally gave him.  
  
However, this scheme extended far beyond the traditional battle between villainy and good. The problems started to hit at home as well. Wildwing and Nosedive, loving and united brothers, were growing increasingly separate, because the mask was starting to control the white mallard's life. All those missions and hockey games; Wildwing barely ever took the mask off. Most fans didn't even know what he looked like underneath and Nosedive was beginning to form foggy memories himself, and that what was scariest part about the whole ordeal. Wildwing was losing his life to the throne of leadership, and Nosedive felt himself sweeped under the rug. Nosedive knew in his deepest thoughts that his older brother was now jealous of Duke, but, he didn't care because the elder mallard did something that nobody did for him as of late; listen to him. Duke found him on the roof of the Pond when his heart was crying out for help, and he found out that Duke had a sympathetic ear every bit as effective as his brother's was.  
  
"He's not the only one with a mask..." Nosedive whispered to himself, continuing to stare into space, continuing his thoughts.  
  
However, that one day when he faced Wildwing in the mask, looking beyond the ruby eyes to the deep blue pupils underneath and telling him that he hated him; that was the only time when all his rage, all his hiding feelings of abandonment came to the surface, in a way that Nosedive had never intentionally meant. Behind the mask, Wildwing had finally woke up from the fever of authority. His mask came off and that face, which Nosedive was sure would be ready to continue the confrontation, lost all the will to fight. Wildwing had finally figured it out; he was truly losing his little brother. Never did he realize it until those words came out and the whole joy ride came to an end. Nosedive cringed to himself at the shame of what he said. He never meant to make the tears come out, but they had. He never meant to make the mallard's heart break, but he did it. He had to get out of there, to escape the stares of his teammates. He did the unthinkable and now was suffering the full effect of it, his mind continuously repeating those words, teasing his tear ducts, and altering his whole perception of reality.  
  
After that moment of rage, things began to fall apart completely. Duke served as his sole support, but even he, along with the other teammates, refused to let it die; they tried to unite him with Wildwing. Though every time the teen looked at the blasted mask, holding his brother hostage and making him act purely militaristic, he couldn't help but feel the anger start to boil within his soul, his heart crying out in pain. Nosedive felt ashamed, his feelings all caught in this network that had tied itself into knots. He couldn't find the words to say and all he could see was the mask, cloaking the glances of pain on his elder brother's face. Never in that three month period did he see the real face of Wildwing; it was always the golden mask, continuing to ineffectually stare at him, as if trying to scan his soul and dissect it, using that cold glance to drill into his subconscious and attack his mind. Nothing worked; the two didn't reconcile. Where did it go wrong? Nosedive couldn't handle the train of thought at the moment. He began to let his mind drift and eventually, it settled on better times, before the latest schemes and emotional problems.  
  
"It was such a simpler time…" Nosedive whispered to himself, closing his eyes and starting to envision past times with his older brother.  
  
(Flashback)  
  
It had been only a few days since the ducks had arrived on Earth and were trying to settle into a new life under the Anaheim Pond. After a long day of unpacking and trying to rebuild the underbelly of the stadium into their new headquarters, a tired Wildwing changed out of his battle armor, taking off his mask, and tossing on a large sweatshirt. Lacing up his new shoes from an earlier trip to the mall, the leader found his teammates scattered around on the new living room furniture, all talking or sitting peacefully.  
  
"I'm going to go for a walk." He said, holding up his com to assure the rest of his team that he would stay in contact.  
  
"So, you finally decided to get out of the ready room?" Duke joked, putting his feet up on the table and taking another sip of coffee.  
  
"Yeah. I heard there was some nice weather outside, and I can't spend it all in here anyway. You guys should get out of this place too." Wildwing said casually, adjusting his sleeves a little bit.  
  
"Hmmm, maybe they have another all-nighter at 'Lectic Land…" Tanya thought for a second and got up, heading to the phone to call the store.  
  
"You got a point. Besides, I'm sure I could find something good at the mall, especially with that Moonlight Madness sale going on." Mallory got up from her seat and went to her room to switch into casual clothes.  
  
"I guess it's a good night for a ride." Duke put down his coffee and stretched before standing up, grabbing the keys to a Duckcycle and strolled down the hall to the ready room.  
  
"I shall stay here and reflect." Grin commented slowly, keeping his eyes shut. All of a sudden, Nosedive came out, holding a comic book and a can of soda.  
  
"Hey, Dive. I'm heading out for a walk." Wildwing said, the slight hint in his eyes told the teen that he was hoping for him to come along.  
  
"Want company?"  
  
"I was hoping, baby bro." Wildwing gave a warm smile. Nosedive eagerly grabbed a jacket and slipped into his causal tennis shoes. Joining Wildwing, the white mallard ruffled his brother's hair with a slight bit of playful protest and brought an arm around his shoulders, the two walking out together.  
  
"Almost makes me miss my brothers." Tanya thought to herself, hanging the phone up and heading off to change.  
  
Outside the Pond, the two ducks slowly paced through the parking lot, looking up at the stars. Sparkling with a warm purity to them, the two couldn't help but feel that even though they were caught in the middle of a war with Dragunaus, there was still peace in the world. Everything seemed so beautiful once they looked past the concrete boxes and lots surrounding them, as their minds drifted up into outer space, wondering where they had come from and if they would ever return. Reaching the end of the parking lot, the brothers turned and went along a side street, deciding to walk through a residential neighborhood that had seemed serene and inviting.  
  
"So, what do you think of this place, big bro?" Nosedive broke the silence as he looked at a row of homes, dragging his feet a little.  
  
"I don't know yet Dive. It seems like a real nice place. Heck, there's even a place to play hockey. Still…everything is so weird here." Wildwing looked up at the stars again, his eyes softly glowing from the moonlight.  
  
"Well, they got some great food and comics here, I can say that much!" Nosedive clamored up a bit, kicking an empty pop can down the street.  
  
"Is that all you think about?"  
  
"Hey, I need nourishment and something to stimulate my mind. I'm a growing duck."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, but do you think tacos everyday is really that great for you?"  
  
"Of course!" Nosedive gave a grin, flashing his teeth, a dazzling smile that earned its full return among his older brother. Wildwing put his arm around Nosedive's shoulders again and pulled him a little closer.  
  
"Something on your mind, big bro?" Nosedive asked, bringing one of his arms around his brother's back and placed it on Wildwing's large shoulder.  
  
"A few things..." Nosedive instinctively knew what the most pressed thought on his mind would be.  
  
"I know that you're worried about Canard. We'll find him bro; I know we will."  
  
"Funny you say, considering you two never got along." Wildwing gave a harmless flick of his brother's long, blonde hair.  
  
"Well, I know how important he is to you...even though he is Dull Man." Nosedive returned with a playful grin, emphasizing the last two words in particular.  
  
"Ok, so maybe he wasn't as big on fun..."  
  
"You mean Canard knows such a word?" Wildwing answered back with a small chuckle, giving a glance to the moon for a second, before turning down another side street. Soon, the two came to a grassy field next to a school, and decided to plop down and look at the sky. The two laid there for a while, taking in the sights before Wildwing turned over, supporting his head on his arm and looking towards his little brother with a soft smile.  
  
"You know something, Dive?"  
  
"What Wing?" Nosedive turned over to face his brother, noticing the gentle look in his eyes.  
  
"I'm really glad that you're here with me."  
  
"Really?" Nosedive shot up with a mock look of stun, making Wildwing give a small snicker before sitting up with his brother.  
  
"Of course, why not?"  
  
"Well, for one, you're incredibly dull and I'm too cool for you. Two, I got a lot of hair. You're going bald…"  
  
"What do you mean bald?!" Wildwing interrupted, shooting a look of playful disdain.  
  
"Look at that…" Nosedive smiled, ruffling Wildwing's hair. "There's almost nothing left!"  
  
"Then what do you call this?!" Wildwing gave a tug of his large tuft of hair on his head defensively, giving his brother a dumbfounded look.  
  
"Baby feathers!" Nosedive beamed, pointing at Wildwing's hair and laughing.  
  
"These aren't baby feathers!" Wildwing asserted and playfully tackled Nosedive, wrestling him to the ground. The older mallard began tickling his little brother, both of them laughing as they rolled through the grass. After a few moments of struggling Wildwing successfully got a pin on his brother, holding him down and digging into Nosedive's sides, making him howl in laughter. Finally, Wildwing got up, giving a triumphant smile as he and Nosedive sat down next to each other again, Nosedive's quick breathing and suppressed giggles dying down slowly as they continued to look at the stars.  
  
"You know...you may just be the end of me, big bro...ha ha..." Nosedive gave laughing breaths, tapping Wildwing on the shoulder.  
  
"Nah. You know I wouldn't let anything happen to you." Wildwing kept looking up, his beak forming a pleasant smile as he sighed peacefully. "We'll always be best friends, Dive, don't forget it."  
  
"I won't Wing." Nosedive sat for a couple moments more before he rose off the grass, drawing his brother's attention as he stood erect.  
  
"Thanks for bringing me with you…to Earth, I mean." Nosedive said softly, holding out a hand, which Wildwing accepted, getting up to join his brother and continued their walk. Life was truly peaceful, even if times had been tough. As long as they were together, everything would be fine.  
  
(Present Day)  
  
And look at us now..." whispered Nosedive to himself, the dim outline of the ceiling patterns traced with his mind as he continued to reminisce, the memory still fresh in his mind. What ever happened that the two would have lost those moments together?  
  
(Flashback)  
  
It was a few weeks after arriving on Earth. The ducks had little difficulty getting settled into the Pond and even had their first game, a smashing success, drawing a strong fan base by the hour. They even had their first run-in with Draguanus that proved a victory in their favor. Things seemed to be going well, and spirits were still running high. Nosedive was coming back from the mall, carrying a load of comics in his arms and trying to balance a large slurpie against his shoulder, happily sipping as he walked along. The stars were especially strong this night, and he thought that Wildwing and him might spend a little time together before Nosedive allowed himself visitation with his new pile of comic books. Balancing the comics carefully, Nosedive strolled down the stairs and pressed the door's code in with his shoe. Coming in, he immediately attracted stares from his fellow teammates.  
  
"What...is that?!" Mallory stood up, pointing at the comics with the slight look of disgust on her face. She didn't seem to be the biggest fan of Nosedive's hobbies.  
  
"Reading material and plenty of it!" he plopped them down on the table, and wiping his forehead. "Who would know that expanding your mind would be so much work!?"  
  
"If you want to call that expanding your mind..." Tanya replied, her eyes focused down on a small device that she had on her lap, slowly fiddling with the circuitry via a small tool.  
  
"Geez, you'll need a gallon of coffee to get through those Kid..." Duke snickered, holding his cup up to the pile.  
  
"Nah...I got this!" Nosedive shook his slurpie, the liquid inside noisily sloshing around within the cup. "Best caffeine rush in all of Anaheim!"  
  
Mallory rolled her eyes, turning back to the television and muttering to herself. Duke took his cup and went back to a novel on the coffee table. Grin was meditating as usual and Tanya was still immersed in her project. However, Wildwing was absent.  
  
"Hey guys, where's Wing?"  
  
"Apparently in the monitor room." Duke said, pointing his finger without looking up from his book. Nosedive strolled down there, whistling the Mighty Ducks theme to himself. Ever since Phil had gotten in contact with Disney, who made the song for the team, it was transfixed in the teenager's brain, recited about a hundred times each day. His whistling finally ended when he found the newly designed security room. Knocking on the frame of the open door, he leaned his head in.  
  
"Knock knock big bro!" he peered in with a big, goofy smile, and Wildwing turned to him. Only, Nosedive couldn't see his face; the mask was staring back at him.  
  
"Hey Dive, there you are."  
  
"Yeah! What's the haps, Wing?"  
  
"Monitor duty, nothing much." he turned back to the monitors, looking over scenes of the inside and outside of the Pond. The whole wall was lined with screens, each viewing a different part of the vicinity. Nosedive rolled his eyes after a few seconds. There was not a single motion caught on any of the cameras.  
  
"Dullsville...seriously. Come on bro, it looks great outside...let's go for a walk." Nosedive said, tapping the shoulder plate of Wildwing's armor.  
  
"Can't Dive. I have to stay on the monitors tonight...which reminds me, it's your turn tomorrow." the mask gave him an almost cold stare. Nosedive backed up a little bit, quickly covering up his pang of fear with a sarcastic grin, shifting back and forth energetically.  
  
"Come on, big bro, it's a beautiful night in the neighborhood...would you be my neighbor?" he finished the line next to Wildwing's face, a laugh rewarding his impression. However, the mask stared back in his face, unimpressed by the whole charade. Nosedive tried to ignore it, vividly recalling the duck underneath. Wildwing ruffled his brother's hair with a large, matted hand, his armor shining from reflections off the monitors.  
  
"Sorry, little bro. Can't do it tonight. Maybe some other time." Wildwing gave a smile, but the mask failed to convey his apologetic tone to the teen, only staring on with those same calculating eyes, striking a small sting of discomfort in Nosedive. He sobered down a bit and stood up, plaintively giving another look at the screens before mentally concluding his brother was insane. Wildwing saw his disappointed look and felt a bit bad. After all, his little brother had a way with guilt trips.  
  
"I'll make it up to you, Dive. How about this weekend, we hang out at the mall?" Nosedive perked up at the sound of the mall and began to revive his energetic attitude.  
  
"Cool, man! The new Captain Blasto comic will be out...oh, that'll be soooo cool!" he started jabbering on, Wildwing chuckling as he heard the whole life story of the superhero in record time. He patted Nosedive on the back, standing up.  
  
"Ok bro. I got to get back to work. I'll see you later then, all right?"  
  
"Sure. Bye Wing...have fun...yeah right!" his laughter echoed down the hall. Wildwing sat back in the swivel chair and continued to look over the screen, his eyes scanning for any sight of enemy activity...but nothing happened. "It is a beautiful night though..." Wildwing thought to himself, wondering if he should have taken the walk after all.  
  
Neither could foresee that on that particular Saturday, Draguanus had decided to attack a robotics plant to steal parts to expand his droid collection. The ducks were able to stop him easily, but there was some light injuries dispensed to a couple members of the team. Duke had suffered some light cuts, while Mallory got a bruise on her side from taking a hit from a wayward machine. Getting back to the infirmary, Wildwing stood with Tanya as she explained their injuries. Neither duck was in serious condition and were free of medical examinations after an hour. However, both were forced to take it easy as they healed up and Nosedive saw the cooling of action as the perfect opportunity to go to the mall with Wildwing, as promised. He caught the leader standing in the ready room, checking out some of the materials that Draguanus had tried to steal earlier, the mask scanning over them studiously.  
  
"Hey Wing!"  
  
"Hi, Dive, what's up?" Wildwing turned around, the sinister expression of the mask once again staring him down. To complement the scene, Wildwing's head turned back to his work, as if the mask didn't deem him worthy of its attention. Nosedive headed up to him and put a hand on the cold armor covering his brother's shoulder, leaning over.  
  
"What'cha doing?"  
  
"Checking out some of these samples."  
  
"Forgetting something, Wing?" Wildwing took a quick moment to think and looking to his brother's impatient gleam, he returned a confused stare. "What Dive?"  
  
"...ONLY THE MALL! Geez, you're getting old..." he playfully knocked on his brother's head and Wildwing turned to him, leaning one hand on the table.  
  
"The mall? Today?"  
  
"Yeah. Remember Tuesday's monitor duty...and sticking me on monitors the next day?"  
  
"Oh yeah, I remember. But Dive...could we please take a raincheck?" Nosedive hid an expression of disappointment and tried to show his best face, giving a mock look of anger.  
  
"What do you mean by that?"  
  
"I got to look over these samples, Dive. I can't go today."  
  
"Wing, come on. You promised!"  
  
"Please, little bro? Just this once?" Wildwing gave him a requesting look, however, the mask had a difficult time sending it through.  
  
"Oh, I guess...just this once!" Nosedive tried to give a cheery look, and strolled out the ready room, hiding all his hurt and stuffing it away. He went to the mall with Duke, who snuck out under the careful eye of Tanya, and they had a great time, even if they didn't spend too much time together…yet.  
  
(Present Day)  
  
"We never did go together…" Nosedive muttered on his tired breaths, his mind starting to drift on his friend.  
  
What was it about Duke? At first, they were just teammates, little jokes here and there, plus the mutual support for each other against the forces of Mallory or the protective orders of Wildwing and Tanya. Over time, they began to really develop a liking for each other when they realized how much they truly had in common. Nosedive always had the pranks, the occasionally reckless behavior, but no matter what his faults, Duke was always there to laugh it up. Duke never stood back and dismissed him as a waste of space, or tried to punish him for his pranks. He found every bit of it funny and that's what Nosedive wanted, for the team to lighten up and realize the better side of life.  
  
(Flashback)  
  
It was an early morning in the Anaheim Pond and the ducks, not having much in line for the day, spending the morning lounging around and reading the daily paper, talking with each other casually over strategies for the next hockey game. However, Wildwing was sleeping in after another late night at the monitors and Nosedive decided to have a little fun with his brother. During a past trip to the mall, the teen found some blue dye and discovered that it worked really well on feathers. Originally, he wanted to play the joke on Mallory, but she was still mad about the sludge water in her boots from last week. For a while, he was worried he'd never see the light of day again. However, this joke was cream of the crop. Hearing Wildwing's soft snoring, Nosedive snuck into his room and meticulously put on the dye, taking well over an hour, just to make sure that it was done masterfully and without awakening his brother. Turning on the lights just a little bit, Nosedive took a few polaroids just to make sure his hard work was well documented. Sneaking out of his room, he sat down and watched television for the last couple hours of the night, anxiously awaiting the results. He acted as nothing was going on when the team started filtering out, grabbing some food and a page from the morning paper. Mallory was the first one out and immediately shot a suspicious glance at Nosedive.  
  
"What are you doing up so early?"  
  
"Oh, nothing. Couldn't sleep."  
  
"I know you better than that! What are you hiding?!" she held her position, looking for any obvious signs of an upcoming prank.  
  
"Mal-Mal, believe me. I'm not playing a prank on you, chill!" Duke appeared with a cup of coffee, heading around Mallory and plopping down on a recliner, only then noticing the standoff between his comrades.  
  
"Prank?"  
  
"No. Girly girl here is just freaking out."  
  
"I swear Nosedive. If you try anything, I will personally shove my puck blaster down your throat and make you eat it!" Mallory headed off, her stare still making contact with Nosedive out of the corner of her arched eyes.  
  
The moment of truth came some time later, after Mallory had sat down and realized that nothing was going to happen to her. Wildwing came out of his room, groggily scratching his head and waving a hand to the others before entering the washroom. Unfortunately, he suddenly received a chorus of shocked stares and then to follow, the team starting cracking up. Wildwing was totally confused when Duke and Mallory had burst out laughing, the former duck falling out his chair to the floor. Even Grin was having a hard time controlling his laughter. Nosedive stood up, pointing his finger and began to lean forward, hysterically roaring in amusement. This prompted Wildwing to check out his reflection in the mirror and the resulting scream made them laugh harder.  
  
"NOSEDIVE FLASHBLADE!!!" Wildwing came out, his face twisted in furiousness, his eyebrows arched in an intense stare-down. "You are so dead!" he barked before lunging after the teen. Nosedive gave a weird hybrid of a yelp and laugh before dashing off into the ready room, turning the lights off and dashing in back of a console, looking out for the large figure in close pursuit. Turning on the lights, Wildwing looked out over the ready room, his furiousness twisting into a sly smile.  
  
"Come on out, Dive. I only want to talk..." Wildwing slyly grinned when out of the corner of his eyes, he saw his brother, who gave out a terrorized scream and peeled out of the room, through the flurry of laughter in the living room, and out the front door. Wildwing tore off after him, yelling all the way. Duke laid on the ground, wiping tears from his eyes. Tanya started to snort a bit. Even Mallory was extremely amused, but her enjoyment also stemmed from imagining the ways in which she'd torture Nosedive if he dared play such a prank on her.  
  
"Don't be mad Wing! I thought you always wanted to be a bluebird!" Nosedive almost buckled over as he dashed through the locker room, quickly sidestepping into the nearest stall as Wildwing came running by, missing him completely, continuing into the showers.  
  
Nosedive tiptoed out, heading down the stairs and back into the living quarters of the ducks, continuing to shake in convulsions of laughter. As the team was beginning to recover, he approached the table and tossed down the polaroids, causing another chorus to break out.  
  
"That is rich!" Duke managed to say during an exhale, laughing hysterically at the pictures.  
  
"You dare do that to me and you're are dead, I promise!" Mallory tried to sound threatening, but her suppressed laughter ruined the tone.  
  
Nosedive was so busy wiping the tears out of his eyes that he didn't see Wildwing come up behind him, so when he started heading backwards, still caught in the moment, he suddenly turned white when he bumped into his brother's chest. Pointing his head up, a blue face of fury was bent down, ready to take him apart. Luckily, Nosedive only got off with a head-lock, forced into having his hair, face, and hands dyed blue, and then made to go to an autograph signing looking like that. The kids loved Nosedive that much more for it.  
  
(Present Day)  
  
"That was a great day." Nosedive chuckled quietly in the infirmary bed, some light pain developing at his tender side, forcing him to stop and grow silent again.  
  
Suddenly, his thoughts began to grow more depressing. Even through the enjoyable moments and getting lost in the fun of his teenage pranks, he still was compounded with difficult problems under his facade. However hard he tried to have the team lighten up a bit, it never seemed to work very well for the teen himself. Wildwing had only grown more distant, never going on walks and beginning to adopt a tone of stern authority with him. Even though Nosedive was still "little bro", he didn't feel like it anymore, becoming another subordinate of the white mallard. He still gave all his support to his brother and they shared a moment here and there, but in the larger picture, Nosedive began to feel rejected. He once asked Wildwing if he could have a heart-to-heart with him, to clear the air and open up a bit more. He knew that his brother could be meant to understand his feelings and start to recapture some quality time again. What a blow it was to him when Wildwing never showed up to talk, but to chew him out for forgetting about monitor duty…  
  
(Flashback)  
  
It had been a full four months since arriving on Earth, and the ducks were well into routine life, winning every hockey game of the season and even defeating Draguanus on several occasions. Even Nosedive got to save the day once when he was able to take out the laser rifle in Chameleon and Siege's hands with a well-placed puck, allowing the other ducks to get the upper hand on them. Many of the ducks had congratulated him on the move, but Wildwing found it a tad reckless and failed to give him any praise for the assistance. Later that day, Nosedive came into the ready room to find Wildwing looking over some visuals with Tanya, Grin standing the distance silently. Nosedive came up to him first.  
  
"Hey, Grinster. Don't forget that Bernie the Bear is on tonight."  
  
"Wouldn't miss it, little friend."  
  
"You better not. I think this episode will finally prove he's not a bear...and then I will be king of the universe!" he voice raised an octave, drawing looks from Tanya and Wildwing. Nosedive suddenly approached Wildwing with a casual smile, looking into that damned mask for a second before shifting his sight to the screen behind him, coming up in between the two ducks.  
  
"Hey Wing, can I ask you something?" he said, a bit nervous since the thoughts on his mind were uncharacteristically serious.  
  
"Sure Dive. What?"  
  
"Could you possibly meet me tonight? I wanted to talk to you about something."  
  
"What do you mean? Can't you tell me now?" Wildwing seemed mildly distracted; he didn't pick up on the hint of seriousness in Nosedive's words.  
  
"No, Wing...later, just us."  
  
"Alright."  
  
"Thanks Wing. See ya later...after our Bernie the Bear debate!" he turned to Grin, cocking his finger and shooting a smile at the large duck. Grin turned back a smile before looking back to the screen, the other two mallards already caught back up in their conversation.  
  
That night, Dive waited out in the living room, after the other ducks had gone to sleep; all except Wildwing. He was trying to think of how he was going to tell his brother that he was feeling a bit out of the loop. For the last few weeks, Wildwing had grown increasingly distant from Nosedive, refusing to ever take walks or go to the mall with him. To accompany the blow, Wildwing was now wearing the mask more than ever, even in causal moments at home. Nosedive was a little nervous when his thoughts were interrupted by the unmistakable pattern of Wildwing's steps. However, the teen didn't expect Wildwing to come out of the hallway, shooting Nosedive a slightly angry look. Nosedive only saw the mask staring at him, the carved face of hostility in it sending a shiver up his spine. He suddenly realized the Wildwing wasn't there to talk personally; it was something else.  
  
"Dive, what are you doing out here?" Wildwing said dryly.  
  
"Waiting for you!" Dive tried to defend himself, able to clearly detect the frustration in Wildwing's tone. He still didn't know what it was for.  
  
"You are supposed to be on monitors tonight! Why are you goofing around out here!?"  
  
"I have monitor duty…tonight?!"  
  
"Well, if you didn't goof off at the mall all day, you would've checked the schedule." Wildwing replied, now holding a piece of paper and pointing to it.  
  
"I'm sorry, Wing, but I didn't know! Maybe you should have told me instead of making little tables for these stupid jobs…" Nosedive bowed his head in defeat, feeling a bit angry, but Wildwing stopped him in the hallway, his voice calming slightly.  
  
"Dive, don't you realize how important this is? We are at war here! You have to learn to be more responsible, before something happens and you are forced to learn the hard way."  
  
"What about your responsibilities?"  
  
"Such as?" Wildwing arched an eye, a little suspicious of Nosedive's defense.  
  
"You said we could go to mall together. You promised me Wing, and we never went."  
  
"Dive, that's besides the point..."  
  
"Besides the point?! You call that besides the point?!" Nosedive started to raise his voice, only meeting increased opposition from his brother.  
  
"A trip to the mall doesn't mean the difference between life and death, Dive!"  
  
"No, but it..."  
  
"Listen to me Dive. I was wrong to make a promise I didn't keep, but when it comes down to it, it doesn't mean a damn next to Draguanus and doing your duties. You are here as a soldier, not as some mall-crazed teen!" Wildwing didn't want to hurt his brother's feelings, but it was too late. Nosedive became very defensive, facing his brother's reprimand with the slight urge to tear up. He never heard their quality time as not "meaning a damn" and that seriously hurt the teen's resolve the most.  
  
"Wing! If you stopped wearing that ugly mask, you'd start to realize that you're being paranoid! It was an honest mistake!" Nosedive realized that even that he didn't mean it, his words came with a very hostile tone, which made Wildwing borderline furious.  
  
"Don't you ever..." Wildwing hissed the word, drawing Nosedive back a step "... talk back to me like that again. Next time you do that, I'll bench you indefinitely!" he stormed away abruptly, refusing to argue anymore. Nosedive threw up his arms in disgust and went to the monitors, lacking concentration as he absent-mindedly scanned them before beginning to drift into deep thought. He could only think of how the reprimand and the dismissal of Wing's promise. He was really angry, but his pride had also been hurt in the whole altercation. Somehow, the continuing repetition of "worth a dam" on his tumbling pile of emotions caused a single sniffle among the teen, before he pushed it aside and pouted to himself, crossing his arms and expression stuck in anger.  
  
"What a miserable day..." Nosedive muttered to himself, looking back at the screens, their dull insensitivity only made him more angry, forcefully turning away and staring at the ground as his mind continued to endlessly drift into the darkness engulfing him…  
  
(Present Day)  
  
"Yeah, if he only knew…" Nosedive muttered under his breath, the words barely able to form on his beak.  
  
Nosedive continued to drift on the subject; that he wasn't always the happy-go-luck teenager that every duck thought he was. Wildwing wasn't the only one capable of wearing a mask. He was incredibly keen, able to fake everyone out, making them believe that he was the goofy little brother on the team, the duck off to the side cheering for his big brother while he fought Draguanus. They fretted over him, treating him like the child he seemed to be. Yet, the teen had already faced emotional turmoil far past his years, recollections that were locked deep in his soul, even turned away from his loving brother.  
  
"Wing…you never knew me…never had any idea what I go through…" Nosedive began to say quietly, the words dying in the continuous humming of the medical devices. "Nobody knows…" his mind began to wander again.  
  
True enough, it was the secret, the skeletons in the closet that nobody ever got to rummage through. Nosedive remembered how he was horribly tortured in the saurian work camps, undergoing humiliations and punishments that would make most ducks cringe to hear them. Underneath the feathers, the skin still bore many scars of past abuse. It was something the mallard never wanted to talk about, opting to combating his demons alone. Nosedive couldn't bring admit to himself all the terrible things done to him and as a result, it was bottled up inside, and while he had masterfully learned the art of manipulation, the nightmares had slowly leaked into his consciousness. Nosedive regularly spent nights on top of the Pond, locking the door behind him and sitting high above the city, his head hanging in between his legs and crying in the night. Nobody ever found him; nobody was ever supposed to. It didn't happen every night, but Nosedive sometimes couldn't find any energy to hide the tears…he'd run out of the room suddenly, the team looking for him, thinking he was being irresponsible while he hung high above their heads and just sobbed to himself, a solitary figure shaking in the nightly winds. Returning, he faced the condemnation of the others, especially Mallory, who had told him on several occasions that he was worthless. Even though she didn't mean it, Nosedive already had the suspicion that they thought he was. After all, Canard didn't want him and he never received any credit from the team after learning to pilot the Aerowing in record time. He never dreamed of tell anyone his insecurities. Instead, the tremulous desire for peace took over his mind and many nights, after running dry on tears, Nosedive would stand on the edge of the Pond and think about jumping. The perfect way to end a miserable life, right? Yet, Nosedive couldn't do it; he was too scared and would fall back, always finding a way to have new tears ready when he started to chastise himself.  
  
Nosedive also suffered from nightmares on a regular basis. Caffeine worked beautifully in his favor, and often snuck pills under the unsuspecting beaks of his teammates, frequently using them to stay perky in battle or to play hockey. He didn't have many restful nights of sleep. The echoing of his cries from earlier years played in his mind. One time, he woke up hysterically screaming after falling asleep in the living room and was barely able to convince the others it was the fault of a horror movie he had watched. Nobody could ever know. Nosedive always locked his door when he slept because he didn't want anyone to come in and find him suffering from the nightmares. In the last few months, Nosedive actually had to wear a bandana around his mouth to stifle the screams. He would wake up and nobody would ever come to help him, and that was the way he wanted it. However, one night everything was thrown out of whack, when Duke had actually discovered his secret. After they had decided to open up to each other, Nosedive still hid much from the thief, but Duke knew that under the exterior was a chaotic soul, in desperate need of help. It was so buried that Grin could hardly ever get a glimpse of it, and often thought his friend was fine. One night, Duke snuck up to the door, listening for a sign of the repressed cries. He ears were treated to his muffled screaming, another nightmare invading the teen's subconscious. Being the gifted thief he was, it was easy to crack the code on the door and enter the room to wake up Nosedive.  
  
(Flashback)  
  
"Kid...Kid...are you all right?" Nosedive quickly untied the bandana and stuffed it under the covers embarrassedly, and tried to clear his thoughts for a moment before answering.  
  
"Yeah...never better. Just a little nightmare, that's all."  
  
"Must be some nightmare if you have to put that over your mouth."  
  
"It's...uh...my lucky bandana. It falls off at night sometimes." Nosedive's rushed excuse only made Duke more suspicions.  
  
"Kid..." Duke sat down on the bed, taking Nosedive's face and gently forcing it to face him. "You are hiding things from me."  
  
"No I'm not Duke. It's just a nightmare. Too many triple beef tacos." Nosedive managed to form a smile, the droplets of sweat running along the crevices of his beak feverishly.  
  
"And this?" he pulled out the bandana and waved it in front of Nosedive's face.  
  
"Like I said, my lucky bandana."  
  
"Some lucky bandana…what, does it try to choke you or something?"  
  
"It just slides off my forehead." Nosedive disregarded Duke's comment.  
  
"Last time I checked, bandanas don't tend to fall off your forehead and into your beak."  
  
"Look…I just don't want to wake the others." Duke was able to hit the next line of defense of the teenager, making mental note of it before continuing.  
  
"Kid, listen. I shared with ya a lot about my life and I thought we passed this point. If you're sitting here, hiding things so traumatizing that ya have to stop your screams with a cloth, then we really have problems to discuss."  
  
"Look, it's just helpless memories...no problemo..." Nosedive desperately tried to stop Duke from continuing to probe into his thoughts, but it wasn't working. The mallard's eye was focused and relentlessly continued its pursuit for answers.  
  
"Kid...Nosedive, listen to me. You can't keep holding in these memories. You need to talk them out before the others begin to find out the real you."  
  
"The real me?"  
  
"Face it. You aren't the carefree teen you pretend to be. You're brilliant at pretending, the Brotherhood would even be impressed by your deception, but I don't buy it."  
  
"Duke, they're just nightmares."  
  
"Why do ya hide them?"  
  
"Because they're loud."  
  
"Why are they loud?"  
  
"I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"But ya have to."  
  
"No I don't!" Nosedive spat, turning away forcefully, eyes glued to the wall. He was annoyed with Duke for continuing to harass him, but he could feel the pain of his nightmares slowly biting into his resolve. He began to feel his legs buckle under the pressure, the emotional pangs beginning to take their toll. Duke was slowly tearing down that outer shell of Nosedive and the teen was terrified of it.  
  
"Was it the camps on Puckworld?"  
  
"…" Nosedive wouldn't answer, his mind swamped with the experiences upon hearing the words. It made his heart intensely beat in his chest, and he started to shake his head no, but somehow, he just couldn't find the will power to do it.  
  
"So it is. What happened?"  
  
"Stuff..." Nosedive began to look away, shifting uncomfortably in his bed as the memories of his dreams began to haunt his mind. He pleaded in his mind to make Duke stop, before he would be unable to lose his grip and began to let his emotions take control. He began to tremble as Duke continued.  
  
"Kid...tell me...please. Whatever happens, I'll listen to ya...I promise..." Duke laid a hand of Nosedive's burning back, the teen struggling to hold in the tears, so he wouldn't let Duke see him fall apart like that.  
  
"Duke...please...I'm begging you...I can't do it. I can't say." Nosedive thought out loud; his soft, pleading voice surprising the elder mallard.  
  
"Come on…"  
  
"Duke, please!" Nosedive raised his voice, the desperation beginning to shine through. "I don't want to go there…it hurts to much…I can't…" he caught his voice before it began to crackle. He sat on his unstable hands, attempting to still hold onto his confident form in front of Duke, but it wasn't working. Duke's concerned tone, never heard before, was burrowing a hole right through his defenses and starting to reach into his core. The teen knew he couldn't defend himself much longer.  
  
"Nosedive Flashblade..." Duke never used his full name like that before. "Don't hide it inside; let it out...I'll listen. I promise. You got to let go…" Nosedive bowed his head, the memories were still buzzing in his mind. He grabbed his blanket, small beads of sweat began to form on his burdened forehead. He was scared...scared to cry and show that side to the others. It was his secret, even beyond the reach of confidantes.  
  
"Can't do it right now...I'm gonna lose it." Nosedive held back a sniffle, his eyes burning with tears, and his face forcefully stared at the sheets below, his mind trying to analyze the folds of his blanket to find comfort. However, Duke took his face, and returned it to eye him, knowing that this was for the teen's own good. He wanted to help Nosedive and confrontation was the only way he knew to do it.  
  
Duke was almost scared at this point. He was beginning to see a side of Nosedive that he never had seen before. He had prodded to a point where the teen was on the verge on combusting, years of pain unleashed in a single night. The thief couldn't think of another duck so compounded with problems. Seeing that shaking form on the bed, every last ounce of energy dedicated to holding out, Duke made the realization that there was actually another Nosedive hidden inside of him. For the looks of it, no duck, no even Nosedive's own brother, had been able to reach it like he was doing. Duke had began to really like the teenager, and knowing that the suppression of emotions could only be damaging in the long run, and the teen was already secretly crying for help in the night. Duke could tell from the look in Nosedive's troubled and fearful eyes that the teen was petrified of losing control of his emotions.  
  
"Lose what? Don't be ashamed to cry Kid...trust me..." Duke saw the tears brimming at his eyelids, his quivering beak brimming with words that he had to say, but struggled with all his effort to hold them in. "You aren't a baby to cry...I wouldn't ever think that…let it out..." Duke held him in position, their eyes locked. Suddenly, tears started to escape Nosedive's eyes, and he tried to look down, but Duke prevented it.  
  
"Duke...please..." his low voice shrunk a little, struggling to hide behind wayward glances, but his last defense had been shattered. Soon, the teen found his tears rolling out uncontrollably as Duke held onto him, his affectionate glance reassuring him without the use of words. Suddenly, the teen leaned forward, and Duke took him in against his chest as Nosedive began to cry. His sobbing was quiet, struggling to prevent anyone else from hearing it, but it was too late for regrets. He felt Duke holding onto him like Wildwing did when he was a small child. Nosedive tried to stop, to not let Duke suffer under such an awkward moment, but he kept hearing Duke's soft voice in his ear, pushing him to continue.  
  
"Let it out, Nosedive...let everything out..." he whispered repeatedly. Duke felt Nosedive's grip tighten on him, his crying actually growing more forceful, muffled against Duke's shirt. He just continued to hold on, unsure of what to do. He could just hold on; to let the teen release everything in him.  
  
Nosedive and Duke remained in an embrace for a long time into the night. Nosedive continued to cry, unable to stop, and Duke remained the support, rubbing the teen's back slowly to comfort him. He continued to feel Nosedive's body tremble and rock with the tears and Duke began to wonder what had happened to him to cause so much pain. Why would he try and defend his secrets so deeply in his soul that it had reached a state were he was completely immobilized under the power of his emotions? Nosedive felt humiliated, but at the same time, he couldn't bring himself to stop. For the longest time, he felt Duke continue to hold on, never releasing his hug until the teen was ready. Nosedive almost felt the same way as he had with Wildwing, if he could even still recall the times they actually embraced on a serious note. Nosedive, amidst his sniffles and now an aching headache, slowly pulled back, gaining his ability of speech back from the storm of tears. He looked down shamefully.  
  
"I'm…pathetic."  
  
"No, you're not."  
  
"I feel so humiliated."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I feel like a big baby…come one, come all and see the baby duck crying his eyes out."  
  
"Do you always attack yourself like this, Kid? Who ever taught you that crying was weak?"  
  
"Nobody else does."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"I just know."  
  
"Then you really are ignorant."  
  
"What?" Nosedive felt attacked and grew on the defensive, a small crack of anger shined through the moisture in his eyes.  
  
"I'm not attacking you, Kid. You'd be surprised…almost every duck I know has cried at some point or another. Why wouldn't it be acceptable if we were given the ability to do it?"  
  
"Who have you heard crying?"  
  
"These ears aren't gone yet. I've heard almost every member of this team at some point or another. Well, except Mallory…"  
  
"She could make onions cry with her look." The two ducks enjoyed a quick laugh, helping Nosedive to feel a bit more comfortable.  
  
"How about Wing? Have you heard him?"  
  
"Don't tell him, but yes, I did. When you got silent steps, no one knows there's anyone there to hear them."  
  
"What does Wing cry about?"  
  
"I don't know. Probably about Canard and the same things that are on your mind."  
  
"Why'd you come in here to confront me then? I'm just the kid, right?"  
  
"Only in name. I came because we agreed to open up a little, to share our troubles. I knew you weren't holding up to your side of the bargain, and out of all the ducks, your needs were the most pressing. You needed to release Kid, to finally admit to someone else and yourself. Believe me, you'll feel better now."  
  
"I don't feel better."  
  
"Just wait and see."  
  
"But you know how impatient I am…" Nosedive protested sarcastically, drawing another smile out of Duke.  
  
"Don't let anyone tell you that you're weak for crying, Kid. I don't think you're weak at all. Only the strongest can openly cry."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You heard me. Strong ducks cry, the ones that try to hide them are the weak ones. Afraid to come to terms with their emotions."  
  
"Like I am." Nosedive's humor sunk down again with his head.  
  
"Like you were." Duke lifted his beak, flashing another smile to help Nosedive recover.  
  
"You don't cry, Duke."  
  
"I have. I've had a very hard life and if there's one thing I wanted, it was someone to confide in. I did what you are doing, hiding it from everyone and crying to myself. But you even have a brother to talk to, one who obviously loves you very much."  
  
"I don't feel it anymore…"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"You see Wildwing. He's always got that mask on…as much as I think the legend is cool, that mask is not.  
  
"You feel it's taking over his life?"  
  
"Yeah…exactly."  
  
"I can see what you mean."  
  
"You do?"  
  
"It seemed you two had more interaction when it wasn't on, like when you first met or we got stranded in Sunnyville."  
  
"You noticed?"  
  
"Hey, thieves are supposed to be observant." Duke thought for a minute, unsure of where to steer the conversation. "Ya miss him, don't ya?" he mentally slapped himself for asking such a stupid question.  
  
"Of course I do. I want Wing back."  
  
"You haven't lost him yet."  
  
"Yes I did."  
  
"He's here, there's still time. Make him listen" Nosedive's drying face slowly raised its gaze, under the strands of hair, a shadowy face with glistening eyes refocused on the gray mallard. It was almost ghostly.  
  
(Present Day)  
  
There was still a long way to go, but Duke was able to reach a part of Nosedive that had never found another duck's ear up to this point. For some reason, Nosedive had always feared that if anyone found out some of the degrading things he had to do under the saurian control that other ducks would find him despicable themselves. The teenager already had a low self-esteem, haunted with feelings that the team may have found him useless, but had just not said so because their leader was his brother. Duke destroyed any doubts that Nosedive had against him, proving that his sympathetic ear was every bit as helpful as the teen could've hoped. He reminded him that there was still hope with Wildwing, but Nosedive never got the opportunity to talk to him. At the moment when he was struggling to come clean, Wildwing's zeal for confrontation pushed him beyond rationality, and Nosedive struck back at him with those venomous words three months ago. Now, two hearts were caught yearning for each other but locked in a cold stalemate, either one unsure of how to reconcile with the other. Nosedive grunted in boredom; he hated drifting on the painful. Staring at a clock on one of the machines, Nosedive gave a bored sigh and laid back, facing the bland ceiling, counting the tiles.  
  
It seemed like just a flash. Nosedive blinked his eyes and looked back at the clock again. Three hours had passed since he fell asleep and he could tell that morning had finally come. Getting a better look around the room, Nosedive's eyes drifted from mechanical objects to the various chairs, and then his gaze grew surprised when above him, to the right, was a large bag holding blood, slowly filtering into his body through a needle in his arm. The teen didn't even feel it before, but now consciously knowing it was there, his arm began to grow uncomfortably painful. Looking away and trying to concentrate on other things, his eyes fell on the bed next to him. For some reason, he missed the fact that there was actually another duck laying in it; Wildwing. He was sleeping dismally, his large arms restlessly shifting on his chest. Watching him a little longer, Nosedive spotted that Wildwing was sporting a small wrapping on his left arm.  
  
"You did that, didn't you…?" Nosedive quietly asked himself, looking up to the bag above his head. The teen gave a smile over to his brother and began to feel the guilt pangs revive themselves vividly. Slowly the words he said were recalled, combined with those that Wildwing had said to him recently. Yet, even though Wildwing had called him a brat and that he belonged on Puckworld, there he was, giving up blood to help Nosedive. Suddenly, the door began to swing open quietly and the silent footsteps approached the bed. Nosedive, turning his head, found Duke coming up to him, affectionately smiling.  
  
"How ya doing Kid?" he whispered, coming to the side of the bed and gently giving a brush of Nosedive's hair. Nosedive tried to move more upright, but the pain in his tender side made him stop and lay back down, groaning lightly.  
  
"Kind of miserable…what's wrong with me?"  
  
"You almost lost a kidney, and many of your other organs suffered bruising." Duke replied softly, taking a seat next to the bed, being quiet as he could so Wildwing wouldn't wake. "The team's all real proud of ya, ya know that?"  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Of course…even your brother." Duke leaned in and whispered the last three words, turning his body so Nosedive could get a glimpse of his sleeping form. "He was the only match among us. He had to give a lot of blood to help ya."  
  
"So it was him?" Duke's confirmatory gaze led Nosedive's to the bag for a second.  
  
"Guess he doesn't hate me…" Nosedive sobered a bit, his eyes wandering through the folds of his bed sheets uncomfortably.  
  
"Listen, Kid. A lot of what happened was actually the saurians…do you have any idea what happened to Wildwing after ya left?" Nosedive didn't answer, his silence taken as an invitation to continue. "He just collapsed…on the spot. It was like he was possessed."  
  
"What?"  
  
"He just went down, for the count. Nobody could explain it. In the ship, that saurian creep asked me how 'the brothers' were doing…he knew. The saurians were attacking us in more ways then one."  
  
"Oh…" Nosedive continued to look away, his sullen response confused Duke.  
  
"What is it Kid?"  
  
"Duke…what I said to Wildwing… that was no magic. I said those horrible words to him three months ago. This is all my fault…I ruined us." Nosedive's tone was marred with depression and fatigue. Around Duke's shoulder, Wildwing continued to sleep, the light from the hall revealed that his usually vibrant plumage was sunk and devoid of its typical brightness, a consequence of the whole ordeal. The months had taken its toll on both of the brothers.  
  
"Kid…don't use that as a reason to shy away…ya know it'll only hurt both of ya more."  
  
"I feel so ashamed…" Nosedive muttered, his saddened eyes tried to stare away, but Duke had turned his beak, forcing his gaze on him, the sign that the gray mallard was growing serious. Nosedive had a mental smile, remembering how effective it worked in the past.  
  
"Ashamed or not, I'm not letting ya avoid Wildwing. The two of ya need each other…I know it, he knows it…you know it." Nosedive nodded his head slightly, turning back up to the ceiling.  
  
"I got to go check on some things, but I'll be back later, alright?" Duke said, standing up, gripping one of the bed rests and giving a smile to Nosedive. "Talk to him…" he whispered, nodding his head to the side where Wildwing was beginning to stir a little. Nosedive didn't say anything as Duke drifted out of the room, but his eyes were focused on Wildwing, which slowly open his eyes and turned over to Nosedive, giving a soft and loving smile.  
  
"Hey Dive…" Wildwing said weakly, pulling his hands down from on top of his chest and putting them to his sides.  
  
"Hi Wing…" Nosedive's eyes started to falter, unable to concentrate on the bird in the next bed. He felt ashamed and embarrassed, but the teen knew he had to confront this, instead of letting it drag out any further. It couldn't have been too late if his brother was still absolutely willing to give his blood.  
  
"Wing…I…"  
  
"No Dive…I…"  
  
"Well, one of us has to go first." Nosedive tried to joke and lighten the mood. The two mallards chuckled very weakly until Nosedive abruptly stopped, clenching his side in pain.  
  
"You ok, Dive?!" Wildwing started to sit up a bit, his concerned, brotherly look was instantly recognizable to the teen.  
  
"You still care…after what I said?" Nosedive didn't know where the words came from, biting his beak and turning his head away to the heart monitor, watching it steadily flicker with activity as the heavy atmosphere thickened a bit.  
  
"Dive…of course. You're my brother…my baby bro." Wildwing stopped for a minute, and then slipped out a small question hesitantly. "You didn't mean what you said…did you?" Nosedive turned over, a little shocked, and he could see the look in Wildwing's eyes. It was like his life was riding on his brother's next words.  
  
"Never…big bro." Nosedive whispered, his eyes getting a little misty. "I didn't mean it…not a single word. I love you, Wing."  
  
Wildwing gave a smile and after a moment, a sniffle accompanied it, his eyes misty along with Nosedive's. "I didn't mean what I said either, Dive. You belong here with us…I never doubted that for a second."  
  
"Thanks." Nosedive's tone sounded unconvinced, the word coming out, absent of any real sincerity.  
  
"Dive?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"What happened to us? We're brothers. We shouldn't be like this."  
  
"I know, Wing. I know…"  
  
"Was it something I did, Dive? Anything at all?" Nosedive's wanted to tell him, but he thought it would only cause Wildwing more grief. However, the elder mallard already was given the hint in the silence that Nosedive had a hidden explanation.  
  
"Dive…I know that look. You're not telling me something. What did I do?"  
  
"Wing…it's nothing, it's me…"  
  
"No, Dive. Tell me…please…"  
  
"I…" Nosedive struggled with himself, wondering what he should do, but his indecisiveness held him in check for the time being.  
  
"Why won't you tell me? Why can you tell Duke?" Wildwing realized he crossed the line with that question, but Nosedive didn't flinch at the comment.  
  
"Because…" his answer was a little cold, but still weighted down with confusion.  
  
"You know you can tell me anything, right?"  
  
"Yeah, Wing, I know."  
  
"Why don't you tell me?"  
  
"Wing…" Nosedive turned to his brother, hoping that his glance would stop him from questioning, but it only made Wildwing more determined. Nosedive saw that he wanted the answers, regardless of the hurt and pain residing in his doleful eyes.  
  
"Dive, tell me? Why aren't you talking to me like you used to? You used to tell me everything."  
  
"I know…"  
  
"But what?"  
  
"Things change."  
  
"What do you mean things change?"  
  
"They do."  
  
"Why'd they have to change for us?"  
  
"Because that's what life does, Wing."  
  
"And what would happen if I say I don't want to lose you?" Nosedive's frown grew a little disheartened and he vigorously tried to avoid exchanging eye contact again. The resistance on his face made Wildwing slightly nervous.  
  
"Dive…I didn't really lose you…did I?" Nosedive didn't answer.  
  
"Dive?"  
  
"Wing…" Nosedive's face turned back, the anger at the back of his eyes shined right through, confirming Wildwing's suspicions and made him a little horrified.  
  
"When Dive? When did this happen?!" a slight twinge of panic was barely subdued in Wildwing's overzealous words.  
  
"Wing, it's nothing…don't worry."  
  
"Don't you get it!?" Wildwing's hand audibly grasped the armrest, and the avian used whatever strength left to pull himself to a sitting position, searching Nosedive's eyes for the answers aggressively. "Dive, you got to tell me! I may have lost you now, but I won't let it last…Nosedive Flashbeak, tell me!" the authority in his voice wasn't that of a leader, but of the elder brother. Nosedive felt defeated against that long-forgotten tone and gave a long sigh before he began to speak.  
  
"I…feel we have." He finally admitted, his voice crackling with the emotional weight. Wildwing hesitated a moment, trying to think about to the most logical answer, and soon, the recalled images of abuse made the answer apparent.  
  
"The camps…" Nosedive nodded slowly to answer.  
  
"But we found each other."  
  
"It wasn't the same."  
  
"How?"  
  
"Things happened."  
  
"What kind of things, Dive?"  
  
"Bad things…I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"It wasn't great for me either, Dive. Those were painful times."  
  
"It was for us all, Wing."  
  
"What happened to you there, Dive? What did they do to you?" Wildwing's characteristic worry was evenly distributed over his words.  
  
"It doesn't matter; you couldn't do anything about it."  
  
"Did they beat you?"  
  
"Wing…why do you want to know so bad?"  
  
"Why won't you tell me?" Nosedive grew frustrated and began to lose his composition. Surprising Wildwing, he sat up, fighting the pain and turned a hardened glance to him.  
  
"You don't get it Wing. Those camps were hell…pure hell. Yeah, we found each other again and I was growing happy again, but then comes Canard…"  
  
"Dive…"  
  
"Just listen!" Nosedive snapped, Wildwing felt beguiled by the harsh tone. "Canard wants you to go with him…just you. 'Beat it Kid', he said, but you had to convince him to let me come. You know what it's like to know that your brother's friend didn't give a damn if you lived or died. Some friend, wasn't he Wing?"  
  
"Dive…"  
  
"Wasn't he Wing?!" Nosedive's eyes were fiercely arched, giving Wildwing a pang of intimidation. We wasn't used to seeing Nosedive express so much anger.  
  
"I wasn't happy with Canard for doing that…"  
  
"Neither was I. So here we are; I'm the feeble little tag-along, playing second fiddle to everyone else. I couldn't dwell on the fact that Canard wouldn't have given a damn that I died, so I just played along."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I played along, Wing!" Nosedive raised his arms, his voice raising with a tone that Wildwing never heard before. It seemed as if his care-free attitude had completely melted away and a stronger force down within his brother was coming alive, making him grow more bitter with each proceeding word. "I played the happy-go-lucky teen for me…for you. I didn't want you to worry and I wanted to be the old me again, the brothers we were."  
  
"But we always were…"  
  
"No, Wing, oh no, we weren't!" Nosedive twisted his beak into a downtrodden frown, catching his brother by surprise. "See, you don't get it, and that's the real surprise. You never suspected. I spent too many nights up on Puckworld crying for you, my hero to come and rescue me in the night while I suffered in those camps. I was so sure you would come and help me, just like you always did when I was just a little child. You never came…you never did…and all those days I was beaten, had to endure torture, rape, and even forced to fight for my life…my spirit was broken, Wing, broken to bits! I spent so many nights praying…for death, for peace, for anything, but all I met was some saurian's unforgiving whip! Oh, but then the day came when I found you…" Nosedive's tone suddenly adopted a prevalent, sarcastic tinge, quickly fizzling into his continuing speech "…and I thought I could hide it all…have another chance since I never stopped loving you, because I realized you probably were as powerless as I was…oh no, but all of a sudden, Canard comes along…tries to take you away. Leave your little worthless brother behind and be a hero! Sometimes I think you should have left me, so I could have died and wouldn't have to sit here thinking about how the team thinks of me, but other days, I'm thankful for every breath. Yet, life's not good. Though Canard's not here, he already won…he made it happen, and you had no clue…none. You and I disconnected…" Nosedive didn't realize the hot tears that were slowly dribbling down his cheeks, seeing them returned in his brother's eyes.  
  
"Dive…" Wildwing let a futile plea for attention, tears of pity caught in his eyes, but it dissipated before reaching his sibling's ears.  
  
"I needed you Wing, I continued to need you. I hoped that I could just hide my problems and slowly get them through to you, so we could open up to each other. Do you know how many nights I spent crying up on the Pond alone, or tying damned bandanas around my mouth to stifle the screams from the nightmares? Pumping myself full of caffeine just so I had the energy to play a game of hockey or fight Dragunaus? You guys yelled at me, calling me irresponsible for taking off at times…but, all you had to do was to look hard enough, and you'd find me." Nosedive's voice was crackling with tears, nearly a whisper. "I was right over your heads, shivering in the night winds, tired of life. So many times, I wanted to jump…to end it all, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Of course, I needed to talk to my big brother, right? He'd fix me up…WRONG! All I ever faced was that damn mask of Drake DuCaine. You ever try staring into it months at a time? Let me tell you something Wing. You are one hell of a leader, but with that mask on, you are a miserable brother. That's why I hung out with Duke. Because he offered to listen…you never did" Nosedive plopped down, his hostile tears were savagely brushed aside as the teen turned to face the wall, bewildered at the fact he just said spilled everything, in one long string of words. He finally told Wildwing the truth and turned his back to let the elder mallard deal with it. He continued to cradle himself in the bed, his faded eyes still fabricating tears and leaving him to feel the repeated bouts of stains upon his pillow. His heart almost jumped into his throat when he fell two large hands softly touching his shoulders. He swung around to find Wildwing sitting next to him, the armrest lowered so the two tearful avians had close contact with each other. Wildwing physically turned his brother to face him and hovered over the bed, holding Nosedive in a soft embrace as he choked on his emotions.  
  
"Stars, Dive…if only I knew." He whispered in his ears, the downy feathers of his head snuggled against Nosedive was comforting to the teen, along with Wildwing's strong arms around his body, holding him in close. "Dive…why didn't you tell me…you felt this way? I was losing the one duck that meant the most to me…you know that, don't you? Baby bro, I love you more than life itself…you're all I have left."  
  
"You got the team…and Canard." Nosedive turned his head, so it leaned sideways against Wildwing's chest. Even if he was still wasn't verbally negotiable, Nosedive never shied away from physical contact.  
  
"No, none of them are like you. Dive. Everyday when I woke up in the morning as a kid, every time I saw you come up to me, the look of admiration in your eyes, I felt that I never wanted to let you down. You single-handedly gave me purpose. The camps were terrible for me too, even if it was for only a couple of years, I still had to fight the feelings of suicide, trying to stay alive, so I could find you. I needed you, little brother…like you needed me. I knew that somewhere out there, over the fields I looked at in the night that there was a camp where you were, scared and frightened, waiting for me to come and rescue you. I'm sorry I never came…" his words grew increasingly muddled with the threat of tears, the memories compelling Wildwing to give into his emotions.  
  
"It wasn't fair…why'd Canard try to take you away?" Nosedive whined, unsuccessfully fighting his own tears.  
  
"I don't know, Dive, I don't know. I couldn't believe he said that, to tell you to go away. We had just found each other and I'd truly die if I had to let you go again. I didn't want to make you feel like my luggage by telling Canard that you had to come too, but my mind was just racing at the moment, and I said the first thing that came to mind. I didn't know you felt that way…"  
  
"I tried to act happy…I didn't want to worry you Wing."  
  
"So what if I worry a lot? I'm used to it. You should have told me, Dive."  
  
"I tried Wing…I remember once when I wanted to talk to you…you just yelled at me for supposedly skipping monitor duty."  
  
"Stars, Dive, I had no idea it was that…I was that hard to talk to?"  
  
"Without the mask, you were fine Wing, but you barely ever took it off. You were very hard to approach with it on."  
  
"I wish I knew beforehand…"  
  
"No, Wing. I didn't blame you for it anymore. Maybe I am just a basket case. You had responsibilities as our leader…"  
  
"…And your brother."  
  
"That isn't as important." Nosedive tried to make excuses for his brother, but Wildwing wouldn't accept them as an explanation for his behavior.  
  
"It is to me, Dive. I told you…you are my support, and here all this time, I've been taking it for granted, too blind to see under his eyes that you were hurting. I guess it all built up and you finally had to unleash it when I started to argue with you that day."  
  
"Still, I was still wrong to say I hated you. I thought I could get back at you; I just didn't care anymore. I wished everyday since then I could've taken them back…for hurting you so much."  
  
"I hurt you just as much Dive. And then the things I said…I swear, baby bro, I can't even remember the words."  
  
"The saurians had a role in it, Wing."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Wraith asked Duke how we were doing during the battle. He sensed our pain and built on it."  
  
"I can't believe it. How could anyone force such horrible words to come out of my mouth? I thought I could never bring myself to attack you like that."  
  
"It wasn't you."  
  
"But I feel dirty for saying them."  
  
"Wing, it wasn't you."  
  
"Dive…baby bro. Let's start over again, then. Let's not dwell on this, and let's start to be good brothers again."  
  
'What do you mean?"  
  
"I'm going to start by making you a promise right now, little bro. I'm going to start being more like the brother you want and deserve. I'm going to get you back, whatever it takes, Dive. You got to trust me when I say that my leadership isn't as important to me as you are. Whatever happens, nothing can change the fact that we're always going to be brothers, whether I'm leader or not. Leadership isn't forever, but brotherhood is."  
  
"Wing…?" Nosedive's eyes, etched with tears, looked up from the mallard's chest to look him in the face.  
  
"Yeah, baby bro?" Wildwing tightened the embrace slightly, pulling Nosedive closer and warmly enwrapping him in his loving arms. Nosedive started to return the hug, his weak hands barely holding onto Wildwing's back as he brought his head up on his brother's shoulder.  
  
"I want you back, Wing. I need you big bro." Wildwing caught a tear in his eye as he brought his beak to Nosedive's ear to whisper back.  
  
"I want you back too, baby bro…" the two mallards stayed locked in an embrace. Somehow, Wildwing was now standing at the side of the bed, holding Nosedive up, who was now kneeling, equally enveloped in his sibling. Neither one wanted to let go, neither one would let the moment pass. Soft sobbing encased the room once again as two still forms remained in each other's arms as the sun rose outside. Duke was standing at the door, giving a pleased smile before turning to the other ducks, which were eagerly awaiting his news in belated breaths.  
  
"They made up…" Duke whispered to the other ducks. Holding their cheers in, they quickly strolled away, out to the living room to express their joy at the reunion.  
  
(Three weeks later)  
  
It was yet another quiet evening in Anaheim. The Mighty Ducks had just won yet another hockey game against the Minnesota Wild, and celebrated by lounging around down in the living room, gathered around the television to watch another round of Phil's rental movies. It wasn't the actual films that the ducks were enjoying, but it was just being together, the first time that they could truly enjoy each other's company in months. It was if Draguanus had completely vanished, not a single scale was found in Anaheim, leaving a peaceful few weeks for the ducks to enjoy. Instead of actively searching out Draguanus in a retried attempt to defeat him, the ducks decided to sit back and just take it easy, living life simply and largely absent of the stress that ran hand and hand with being superheroes. Now, they were all gathered around, a comedy playing on the television and another quiet night up ahead for all of them to relax.  
  
Once in a while, a pair of eyes would quickly shift over to the couch where Wildwing and Nosedive were sitting together, laughing at the comedy unfolding on the screen, their arms around each other's shoulders in an embrace. Duke looked at the smile on Nosedive's face and thought happily to himself. The teen had grown increasingly peaceful everyday, along with Wildwing, now that they had reconciled and had dedicated this time to rebuilding their relationship. For the first time in months, Wildwing actually was interacting with the ducks outside of battle armor, the mask kept tucked away in his belt's holding bag, rarely ever used except for a NHL game or a fan appearance. Also, the two brothers were spending a lot more time together. While they still were standing with the team to face their foes in the rink and out, the two were hanging out together in their free time, joking around or having serious conversations about their past. One night, they fell asleep together on the couch after a long and involved discussion about Bernie the Bear, after Grin had given up and went off to meditate. Duke came out to find Wildwing's large frame enwrapped around Nosedive, holding him almost like a teddy bear, while the younger duck was peacefully snuggled in, like a newborn.  
  
"Ah, the pointlessness of it all…" Duke said silently, as he mentally imagined the arguments over Bernie the Bear.  
  
"What?" Nosedive turned over to Duke, Wildwing's eyes following along, his smile warm and passionate as his gaze fell on Nosedive.  
  
"Nothing." Duke gave a wave of his hand, successfully sending the siblings' attention back to the television. He tried to watch the mindless, flashing images on the glowing box, but he couldn't help staring at Nosedive out of the corner of his eyes, carefully disguised under the lack of light and the strategic placement of the television that allow him to discreetly glance towards the others without attention.  
  
Nosedive had never been in better spirits, at least not to Duke's recent memory. Not once, after a week of checking, did Duke hear any sign of muffled screams from his dreams; he opened himself up to Wildwing and Duke, causing a lot of anger and tears among the teen (and his brother), but he was learning to cope with the past and move on. Nosedive had also returned to his old attitude, nearing avoiding premature death at Mallory's hands twice in the last week. He still loved the mall, but laid off the slurpees for a while, actually going for sports drinks to break off with his caffeine addiction. Wildwing happily followed along now, watching movies together and just browsing through the stores. Nosedive had received a lot of attention from Wildwing, especially since he had latched onto his little brother for the past several weeks. At a few points, it was almost borderline over-protective, but Nosedive's sensitive feedback made sure to keep Wildwing in a reasonable state-of-mind. At the same time, the white mallard had also continued his role as leader, the mask not as intimidating to anyone as it once was because it wasn't used as a synthetic life-support tool like in the past. He was still the great leader that the Mighty Ducks respected, now even more so because he had gotten his priorities straight and finally learned to realize his strength lied in his friends and family, rather then the artifact of the Puckworldian legend. Could it be a happier ending?  
  
All of a sudden, a shriek filled the air. The ducks were all startled as Mallory threw her popcorn in the air, raining down on the mallards and convincing Wildwing to press the stop button and turn on the lights.  
  
"Mallory, what's wrong?!"  
  
"What the hell is that?!" she spitefully shot an arm out, finger centered on the sight of a large spider on the ground. "It was in my popcorn!" Wincing slightly, Tanya inspected it a little more closely.  
  
"Uhhh…it's not real." She replied, poking its rubbery form, rippling in reply.  
  
"What?!" her cold stare began scanning the room before she and the others saw the goofy smile on Nosedive's face, trying to cover it up with a harmless grin. His mischievousness immediately was met with scrutiny when Mallory jumped up, smacking her fist in to her palm.  
  
"That's it, you're DEAD!" she gave the battle cry, the signal for Nosedive to run, which he almost instantly jutted off down the hall so fast that Wildwing barely noticed the teen left his side. Mallory ran after him, her energetic footstep matching her enraged shouts and threats. The other ducks shared a quick laugh over the whole incident (technically, Grin just smiled), until Duke nudged Wildwing.  
  
"Think we should save the kid?"  
  
"Maybe…" all of a sudden, Mallory gave another roar and the sounds of scattered metallic items clanking on the ground followed, Nosedive's body passing by in a daze, jumping behind Wildwing, who was now standing. Soon, a flurry of stomping feet methodically proceeded down the hall, with the cause now brandishing a puck blaster, was now pointed it at Wildwing's chest, with Nosedive snickering behind it.  
  
"Move Wildwing…Nosedive's getting it this time!" She let off in a low growl, her patience wearing thin.  
  
"I can't let you shoot my little brother!" Wildwing exclaimed defensively, holding out his arms to prevent the puck blaster from going any further.  
  
"Fine, then I'll gas him!"  
  
"Mallory!"  
  
"Oh, no you don't! Not this time! He's not escaping this time!"  
  
"Come on, Mal Mal, take a joke!" Nosedive's muffled voice came from behind Wildwing, followed up with a quick laugh. Tanya stood by unimpressed while Grin was in meditation, occasionally raising an eyelid to catch a peak of the action.  
  
Duke shook his head, from the corner. "Yup, things are definitely back to normal..."  
  
THE END  
  
(EDITOR: I really hope that you enjoyed my trilogy and the epilogue. I just want to mention a few observations that influenced why I wrote the way I did. Respond to this in your feedback if you agree with me!!!  
  
1. Wildwing, in my opinion, wears that mask too much. It's a symbol, a battle accessory; it's not like a pair of boxers to wear day and night. I decided to take my own dissatisfaction with his obsessive icon and use it as a plot device, to encourage division between the brothers. I could actually imagine it being an issue. How would you like it if someone you loved always wore a mask (literally)? Guess it would depend on the mask, but seriously, I wonder if anyone else ever thought that Wildwing was better without it.  
  
2. I admit, I'm a sucker for the Wildwing/Nosedive brother relationship. I'm actually one of those guys (yes, I'm a guy…but that's as much info you get about me) that falls for the "mushy" stuff. I tend to think the more emotional the story is, the better (well, I do have limits). It's too bad the show fails to take it beyond the casual level, but it is aimed to a younger audience who fails to see the possibilities for drama there. Two particular fan fics really stand out for me in this category. "When Nobody Wins" (by Windresss)…what a brilliant story! It was just beautifully written (I'm jealous; I'm definitely not that gifted at writing), and just worked so well together. Of course, there are so many others that I really enjoyed, but for some reason, that one story really stands out for me. Also, "Not Over Yet" by BlueMoonDuchess is another fan fic I want to mention. It was the very first Mighty Ducks story I read, and addressed exactly the emotional connection I was looking for. It also boasted a real life situation, which made it that much more special. Both are great fan fics and I highly recommend them to anyone. I had to make sure I mention that to people who read this story. I actually think that the fan fiction here is by far better than the show. Not to say the show is bad, but face it, mindless action doesn't always make a great story.  
  
3. There was something about Duke and Nosedive that I liked, like they could almost have a teacher-student relationship going on. Duke never seemed to really have a problem with Nosedive, and many other fan fiction already deals with the two of them in different ways, many of them establishing a special relationship between the two. I wanted to do that too. I have future plans for the two of them; it isn't over yet. Just in case there is someone who is desperately trying to read beyond my words, let me assure you. Never, EVER will their relationship turn to anything beyond platonic (at least in my fan fics). I want to make sure and emphasize that, because you never know where misinterpretation lies.  
  
4. Is it just me, or is Nosedive that most complex character in the whole Mighty Ducks series? Seriously, he's the fan fic favorite it seems, and even I make him the principal character in my fan fiction. It's amazing how casually the show treats the potential emotional problems that could unfold for him. Surely, even he (if Disney ever thought about it) could consider the fact that Canard didn't want him, the team may not want him, and the relationships that he is building with the other ducks as the same time as balancing out with his brother. Plus, being the youngest on the team puts him in so many risky situations that it's not funny. This duck has a complex. I can seriously imagining him hiding secrets under that carefree persona, and that's something I wanted to write about. The Nosedive I envision is not exactly the happy-go-lucky teenager. He's actually very keen at hiding secrets and putting on fake disguises to fool others. Not to say that he isn't a joyful teen; he is, but he has a complex. In, in many fan fics, Nosedive is never as nearly as shallow as the cartoon makes him seem.  
  
5. Just a personal quirk, but I hope nobody is unhappy with how long the stories are. I like to think the longer they are, the better. The trilogy and epilogue together comes out to a bit over 100 pages in Microsoft Word (the program I use).  
  
Thanks for reading, and to everyone who left feedback, I really appreciate it. I especially am thankful for some of the authors who even mentioned me in their new stories. I've been reading every new story, eagerly awaiting more. I hope to continue writing more fics in the future, to improve my style. Maybe by then, I'll be less susceptible to those blasted typos littering my stories (yeah, I don't catch them all before I post them, so I'm sorry for the mistakes). I actually went back and corrected them, and will be submitting rewrites to fanfiction.net to replace the originals. I appreciate the time people take to read my stories and I'll definitely be around to read everyone else's and start leaving feedback myself. Until next fic, thanks again!) 


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